Working as the director of a library in a scholarly society, cultural memory organisation and research institute like the Finnish Literature Society is both interesting from the perspective of library science and rewarding in terms of research. I have been able, in a unique way, to deepen my understanding of the focal areas of the Library of the Finnish Literature Society.

The use of information is changing constantly. We are accustoming ourselves to the fact that the majority of research and research material is produced in electronic form or can be accessed on the Internet. The availability of digital material will probably more and more dictate research and the topics of research.

Cecilia af Forselles’s research interests and areas of specialisation are Oral tradition and literary culture; The cultural history of translations of The Kalevala; Literary memory and currents of thought; The History of European ideas, science and learning; Communication, the information society and libraries

Cecilia af Forselles represents the Finnish Society for the History of Science and Learning on the board of the Federation of Finnish Learned Societies. In 2015 the Federation board named her vice-chair, the first woman to hold such a position in the organisation. At present, Cecilia af Forselles is the chairman of the Finnish Society for the History of Science and Learning.

I am lucky to be able to operate in the dynamic and intellectually inspiring environment of scholarly societies. For the academic community, a central issue is dissemination of information and exchange of views. In addition to the dissemination of knowledge, the significance of face-to-face meetings and conversations cannot be overstated.

One of my best moments at the University of Helsinki is connected with the finalisation of the publication project The A. E. Nordenskiöld Collection. Annotated Catalogue of Maps made up to 1800 (1995).